Vietnam team can hardly dream far

Having barely won against weak opponent Nepal in both matches in the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup at home, the Vietnamese team disappointed fans.

Vietnam team in a hard-fought victory over Nepal at Thong Nhat Stadium - Photo: NK

Many fans in the C stand of Thong Nhat Stadium on the evening of October 14 shouted loudly asking the Vietnamese players to play faster in the second half of the return match against Nepal (an opponent 62 places below them on the FIFA rankings) when witnessing the soulless play of their team.

Disappointed with Vietnam team

Vietnam did what they needed to do, winning both matches against Nepal to keep up with the top team Malaysia in the race for the only ticket from Group F to the finals. But looking at the performance, it was all disappointment. Especially the return match at Thong Nhat Stadium, when Vietnam could only win 1-0 thanks to an own goal by a Nepalese player.

The slippery Thong Nhat Stadium surface due to the heavy rain has significantly affected the playing style of the Vietnamese team, as coach Kim Sang Sik and striker Tien Linh admitted after the match. But that is not the main reason for the poor performance of the players. In the first leg without rain at Go Dau Stadium, the Vietnamese team also had to struggle to beat Nepal 3-1 thanks to the opponent being sent off at the end of the first half, when the score was 1-1.

"The match created a gap of nearly 60 places between the two teams" - the commentator exclaimed on live television. But that is not all to describe the disappointment of experts and fans.

Listen to Coach Matt Ross share: "Except for more than 10 players playing abroad, the recent training sessions in Vietnam were the only time we were able to practice on natural grass. My players have not played for a long time, and have only been able to practice on a 20-year-old artificial turf field that is as hard as concrete. After each training session, they have back pain, muscle fatigue... so I cannot let them practice much. In Nepal, the national championship only lasts 3 months and then has a 9-month break. They do not have the concept of practicing 5 sessions/week and playing every weekend."

Coach Kim Sang Sik is not satisfied with the Vietnamese team - Photo: TTO

What is there to dream about in the World Cup?

Having had a hard-fought victory over Nepal in both matches, if nothing changes, it will not be easy for the Vietnamese team to defeat Malaysia (without 7 naturalized players currently being disciplined by FIFA) in the return match at home in March next year.

Many key players of the Vietnam national team have gradually passed their peak and lacked the desire to compete. The U23 players were not used by coach Kim Sang Sik. Specifically, after 2 matches with Nepal, only 5/8 U23 players were used. Nhat Minh, Phi Hoang and Xuan Bac did not play a single minute even though the Vietnam national team played poorly.

In fact, the quality of the Vietnamese players is not that bad. The main reason is the overly simple playing style that coach Kim Sang Sik is applying to both the U23 and the Vietnamese national team. The ball is mainly poured in from the two wings for the striker to finish - a playing style that Vietnamese clubs often used in the first years of professional football to take advantage of the superiority of foreign players to score goals.

Nguyen Xuan Son's consecutive goals in the ASEAN Cup 2024 is a typical example of this style of play. And when the naturalized Brazilian striker was absent due to injury, the Vietnamese team immediately struggled to take advantage of scoring opportunities. Unable to score from the wing, the Vietnamese team turned to play in the middle. But the group coordination near the goal often lacked ideas and often lost the ball after only 3-4 moves.

In a stalemate, Mr. Kim's ability to turn the situation around was not highly appreciated by experts at Thong Nhat Stadium, when the substitutions in the second half did not play as well as the first half.

"I think the substitution in the second half was not good. The attacks were very disjointed because the strikers did not have harmony, because they had almost never played together. When playing together in attack, the players need to understand each other and create harmony. In the first half, the Vietnamese team controlled the game well, but in the second half, they played below their strength. The Vietnamese team lost control of the game and could no longer control the game," expert Phan Anh Tu frankly commented.

Under coach Park Hang Seo, although the Vietnamese team also played defensive counter-attacks like coach Kim Sang Sik, their style of play was also rhythmic and very dangerous. At present, playing against weak opponents at home is still difficult, the Vietnamese team cannot even dream of getting a ticket to the World Cup. Winning short-term achievements in Southeast Asia is probably more within the reach of coach Kim Sang Sik and his team than dreaming far ahead.

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NGUYEN KHOI

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tuyen-viet-nam-kho-mo-xa-20251016091548145.htm